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Shaping Femininity: Foundation Garments, the Body and Women in Early Modern England
In sixteenth and seventeenth-century England, the female silhouette underwent a dramatic change. This very structured form, created using garments called bodies and farthingales, existed in various extremes in Western Europe and beyond, in the form of stays, corsets, hoop petticoats and crinolines, right up until the twentieth century. With a nuanced approach that incorporates a stunning array of visual and written sources and drawing on transdisciplinary methodologies, Shaping Femininity explores the relationship between material culture and femininity by examining the lives of a wide range of women, from queens to courtiers, farmer's wives and servants, uncovering their lost voices and experiences. It reorients discussions about female foundation garments in English and wider European history, arguing that these objects of material culture began to shape and define changing notions of the feminine bodily ideal, social status, sexuality and modesty in the early modern period, influencing enduring Western notions of femininity.
Beautifully illustrated in full colour throughout, Shaping Femininity is the first large-scale exploration of the materiality, production, consumption and meanings of women's foundation garments in sixteenth and seventeenth-century England. It offers a fascinating insight into dress and fashion in the early modern period, and offers much of value to all those interested in the history of early modern women and gender, material culture and consumption, and the history of the body, as well as curators and reconstructors.
Beautifully illustrated in full colour throughout, Shaping Femininity is the first large-scale exploration of the materiality, production, consumption and meanings of women's foundation garments in sixteenth and seventeenth-century England. It offers a fascinating insight into dress and fashion in the early modern period, and offers much of value to all those interested in the history of early modern women and gender, material culture and consumption, and the history of the body, as well as curators and reconstructors.
352 pages, Hardcover
Published December 30, 2021
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April 28, 2024I will probably never get to actually reading this book, but I just listened to a podcast episode with the author and she's delightful (and obviously a Bernadette Banner fan 🤭), the book she is currently working on sounds even more interesting, so fingers crossed I will ever get to them!
Listen to the podcast episode here: https://www.podbean.com/media/share/d...
(Also available on Apple podcasts and Spotify...)
Listen to the podcast episode here: https://www.podbean.com/media/share/d...
(Also available on Apple podcasts and Spotify...)
Displaying 1 of 1 review